11 ATTACHMENT 04 - Laserfiche WebLink

He stated the adjacent neighbor at 4151 Stanley Boulevard had contacted staff after the Planning Commission hearing and expressed concern regarding the potential of the proposed structures to block sunlight on his photo voltaic panels. The applicant has prepared a shade study, which concludes the shadows produced would have little to no shading impacts on the panels in question. Mr. Otto noted that all 20 trees on the site would be removed, including 12 that are designated heritage size trees. There would be only one oak tree removed, and that is a non heritage size coastal live oak in fair health. Staff feels that given the site's constraints, mitigation be made via new plantings and payment into the City's urban forestry fund. Councilmember McGovern said the lack of suitable space for planting new trees appears to be the result of lot sizes and the number of homes proposed. She said it needs to be clear there are impacts associated with this density, and one is that there is insufficient room to plant trees. Mr. Otto stated the existing bungalow style home was constructed in 1908. One member of the Planning Commission and the Pleasanton Heritage Association (PHA) had expressed concern with removing the house and recommended that it be retained. Staff hired a historic preservation consultant to analyze the historic significance of the house, and their finding was that the house did not meet the criteria to be considered a historic structure. Therefore, demolition of that structure would not be contrary to the City's historic preservation policies. Mr. Otto said staff believes the applicant has succeeded overall in designing an infill project in the downtown and recommends the Council approve the project, subject to the attached conditions of approval. Mayor Hosterman noted the applicant has been able to achieve only about 75 green points for the project. She said the Council has not recently approved any project with less than 100 points and requested that staff work with the applicant to improve that score. Mr. Otto said this project is technically exempt from the Green Building Ordinance, as all homes are less than 2,000 square feet, and staff felt that 75 was a good number in light of that. Mayor Hosterman confirmed with staff that current and future landscaping plans are geared towards native and drought tolerant plants. Councilmember Sullivan referred to pages 14 and 15 of the Planning Commission staff report, which discuss the General Plan noise standards and the infeasibility of mitigating interior noise to an acceptable level during the brief periods when the nearby train whistle may sound. He asked what noise levels occur at that time. Mr. Otto said it would exceed the City's standard by approximately 14 decibels. He said the General Plan does allow the Council to look at noise levels in the downtown on a case-by-case basis, and that there have been other projects in the area where the train whistle noise was excluded from consideration. Councilmember Sullivan confirmed that the noise level within a residence's bedrooms would then be roughly 64 decibels, sometimes occurring at 2 a.m., and noted that decibels increase on an exponential basis. Councilmember Cook-Kallio said she walked the property and confirmed with staff that the setbacks of the three homes in question are fairly consistent with almost all development in the immediate area. She asked how the proposed sound wall compares to that behind the existing development to the east. Mr. Otto said it is similar in height. Based on the sound attenuating windows, he guessed the proposed homes would have higher sound reduction than those currently along the railroad tracks. City Council Minutes, December 7, 2010 PUD-82, Donato Builders